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the Creation, that the Great and the Little have need of one another.

* There's no medling with Princes, either with Text or Argument. Morality is not the Province of á Cabinet-Council; and Ghostly Fathers fignifie no more than Spiritual Bug-bears in the Cafe of an unaccountable Privilege.

Truth discovers it felf to Princes, no longer than while they are Young and under Age: It flies a Crown, and vanishes out of fight, as foon as they come to be invefted with Power. If these first Years be not made ufe of to give them good Advice and Inftruction, there will be no retrieving it in the following part of their Lives; for all then goes off in meer juggle and disguise.

There wants nothing more to make a Prince compleatly happy, than the Sweetness of a private Life: If any thing can make him amends for fo great a Lofs, it must be the Charins of Friend hip, and Fidelity of true Friends.

One of the greatest Misfortunes that can attend a Prince, is, that he has often Secrets that lye heavy upon his Soul, and which it is not fafe for him to difclofe. His happiness confists in finding a true bofom Friend, on whom he may throw off his Bur· den.

Nothing is fo much for a Prince's Credit, as the Modefty of his Favourites.

What a happy Condition is that, which gives a Man fo frequent Opportunities, to do good to fo wany Thousands! What a dangerous Poft is that, which expofes a Man to do hurt to fo many Millions!

*All Precepts concerning Kings, are fummarily comprehended in these two; Remember that thau art a Man, and that thou art inftead of God:

The

The one bridles their Power, and the other their

Will.

Laughing, Raillery, Bantering.

Nothing is more rare, than to

pofe.

fee a

Man either Laugh or Weep to the pur

The Enjoyments, which a Plentiful Fortune. affords, and the Calm and Smoothnefs of Profperity, furnish Princes and Great Men with fo much Mirth, that they can Laugh at a Monkey, a Dwarf, and oftentimes at a Cold Jeft: But Men of Inferiour Fortunes feldom Laugh, but where there is occafion.

All the World is plagu'd with Cold Fefters, we tread every where upon those Infects. A good Fefter is a thing very uncommon; and even those that are born fuch, find it a very hard Task to make good their Character a confiderable Time: And befides, he that makes other People Laugh, feldom makes himself Efteem'd.

To Laugh at Witty Men, is the Priviledge of Blockheads: They are in the World, what your Scurrilous Fefters are at Court.

* No Men are more unwilling to bear a Jeft, than those who are forward to break it.

* The Wounding of a Friend for the fake of a Jeft, is an Intemperance and Immorality not to be endur'd.

* Men ought to find the difference betwixt Saltnefs and Bitterness; for he that has a Satyrical Vein, as he makes others afraid of his

Wit, fo he had need be afraid of others Me

mory.

* It is commonly the Fate of Apes and Buffoons, that while they think to make sport with others, they ferve only in the Conclufion, for a Laughing-stock themselves.

The true Raillery fhould be a Defence for good and Virtuous Works, and fhould only deign the Derifion of extravagant, and the Difgrace of vile and dishonourable Things. This kind of Wit ought to have the nature of Salt, to which it is ufually compar'd; which preferves and keeps fweet the good and found Parts of all Bodies, and only frets, dries up, aud deftroys thofe Humours which putrify and corrupt.

There's not one Man of a Thoufand, that understands the juft, the fafe, warrantable, decent and precife Limits of that which we call Banter ing or Fooling, but it is either too Courfe, too Rude, too Churlish, too Bitter, too much on't, too Pedantick, too Fine, out of Measure, or out of Seafon. Now the leaft Error or Mistake in the Management of this Humour, lays People open to great Cenfure and Reproach. It is not every Man's Talent to know when and how to caft out a pleasant Word, with fuch a regard to Modesty and Refpect, as not to Tranfgrefs the true and fair Allowances of Wit, good Nature and good Breeding. The Skill and Faculty of Governing this Freedom within the Terms of Sobriety and Difcretion, goes a great way in the Character of an agreable Converfation; for that which we call Raillery, iu this Senfe, is the very Sawce of Civil Entertainment; and without fome fuch Tincture of Urbanity, even in Matters the most ferious, the good Humour flattens for want

of

of Refreshment and Relief. But there is a Medium yet betwixt All-Fool and All-Philofopher; I mean, a proper and difcreet Mixture, that in fome fort partakes of both, and renders Wifdom it felf the more grateful and effectual.

'Tis the Nature and Practice of Jefters and Buffoons,to be Infolent towards thofe that will bear it; and as Slavifh to others that are more than their Match.

Ο

Life, Death, Time.

NE cannot look either the Sun or Death in the Face.

Very few People are acquainted with Death; it is generally fubmitted to, rather out of Infenfibility and Custom, than Refolution; and all Men yield to Death, only because they cannot help it.

We often fee thofe that are led to Execution, affect a Conftancy and Contempt of Death; which in truth, is nothing elfe, but the fear of looking it in the Face: So that this pretended Bravery and Contempt, may be faid to do their Mind the fame good Office, that the Head-band or Night-cap does their Eyes.

Nothing can be more counterfeit and deceitful, than the Contempt of Dea h. That Contempt of it, I mean, which, the Heathens pretended to out of their natural Reafon and Conftancy, without the Hopes of a better Life. There is a great deal of difference between Dying with Bravery and Refolution, and slighting Death. The former is frequent

enough,

enough, but I look upon the other to be never rea and fincere; and yet Philofophers has us'd all the Arguments that the Subject can bear, to perfwade us that Death is no Evil, and Men of very inferiour Characters, as well as Heroes, have furnifh'd us with a great many Eminent Examples in Confirmation of that Opinion. Nevertheless,I do ftill queftion whether any Thinking Man, ever gave his affent to it ; nay, the trouble they are at to perfwade others and themselves, plainly fhews that this was no fuch eafie Undertaking. A Man indeed may have a great many Reafons to be out of conceit with Life, but he can have none to defpife Death: Even those, who voluntarily lay violent hands upon themselves, do not look upon it as an inconfiderable matter, but are startled at it, and decline it as much as others, if it approach them in any other fhape, but that of their owi chufing. The Unevennefs of Courage, obfervable in a World of Brave Men, has no other Bottom, than the various Influence of Death, which works more powerfully upon their Fancy, upon fome Occafions, and at fome Times, than it does at others. Hence it is, that after having flighted what they did not know, they fear it now, when they come to be better ac quainted with it. If a Man would perfwade himfelf, that it is not the greatest of Evils, he must decline looking it in the Face, and confidering all its Ghaftly Circumstances. The Wifeft and Bravest Men, are they that take the faireft and most honourable Pretences to keep their View from it. But every body that knows it, as it really is, finds it to be a thing full of Horror. The Conftancy of Philofophers, was nothing elfe but the Neceffity of Dying; they thought when there was no Remedy, but a Man must go, it was beft to go with a good Grace. And

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